Printed circuit boards have numerous electronic components mounted to them, such as resistors, capacitors, and microchips. Typically, in order to ease the installation of these electronic components onto the printed circuit board, an electronic package assembly is manufactured which houses the electronic component. The electronic package assembly is then used to mount the electronic component onto the printed circuit board. A specific example of such a packaged electronic component is an accelerometer, which may, for example, be mounted on a printed circuit board used in automobiles to activate an airbag, for instance.
Another example of a packaged electronic component is a large capacitor, which may, for example, be mounted on a printed circuit board used in cellular or satellite phones to store electrical charge. As defined herein, a large capacitor is any capacitor having a voltage rating of about 4 volts to about 33 volts, a capacitance rating of about 1500 .mu.F to about 7000 .lambda.F, or a size of about 4 cubic centimeters to about 8 cubic centimeters. Any other capacitor will be referred to as a "capacitor" herein.
Typically, large capacitors are mounted to a printed circuit board using an electronic package assembly having a metal bracket and a flexible circuit with solder connections for electrical connectivity. The large capacitors must be fastened to the metal bracket and the metal bracket is then attached to the printed circuit board by either soldering the bracket to the board or by fasting the bracket to the printed circuit board with metal screws. Once the metal bracket and the large capacitor are fastened to the printed circuit board, the large capacitor must be electrically connected to the printed circuit board by utilizing a flexible circuit with solder connections.
Another way of mounting large capacitors to a printed circuit board is by utilizing an electronic package assembly having a rubber boot for mounting and a printed circuit board with pogo-pin style connectors for electrical connectivity. The large capacitor is encapsulated in the rubber boot and then the rubber boot is mounted onto the printed circuit board. Next, the large capacitor is electrically connected to the printed circuit board through the pogo-pin style connectors and a printed circuit board contact system. Both of the above electronic package assemblies require that the large capacitor be secured onto the electronic package assembly, that the electronic package assembly be mounted on the printed circuit board, and then that the large capacitor be electrically connected to the printed using connectors which are separate and apart from the electronic package assembly.
Installing a large capacitor onto a printed circuit board using the above disclosed electronic package assemblies is not a simple task and can be rather cumbersome. For example, connecting the large capacitor to the printed circuit board using solder connections requires a substantial amount of time and labor. Additionally, forcing the capacitor into a rubber boot and then installing pogo pin style connectors onto the printed circuit board in order to electrically connect the large capacitor to the printed circuit board also requires a substantial amount of time and labor. Accordingly, further development of electronic package assemblies, and in particular electronic package assemblies for mounting electrical components such as large capacitors to printed circuit boards is necessary to save time and labor during the installation of these electronic components.